1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to the making of decorative bows and a device that will assist in the making of said bows.
2. Description of Prior Art
Originally, decorative bows were made by hand. This time-consuming and tiring operation limited not only the quantity, but also the quality of the bows. Skilled operators became more proficient, but their ability to produce substantial quantity was very limited. This tiring, hand operation limited the number of bows that could be produced in a given time frame. The unskilled operator found the process of making bows by hand difficult, if not impossible, to master with any degree of quality and quantity.
Various attempts have been made to assist bow makers, from long nails protruding from a wooden board to a crude device made of metal with metal prongs. Thereafter, inventors created devices and forms that would make or assist in creating bows from ribbon. These inventions fell into two distinct categories. The first category consists of large, complicated, expensive commercial machines, such as U.S. Pat. No. 4,449,652 Coppins, that are out of the reach of the average business or individual who wants bows for the completion of their projects. The second category consists of small and inexpensive devices and forms, such as U.S. Pat. No. 3,229,870 Capstick or U.S. Pat No. 4,651,908 Ford, that limits the creativity and applications of the operator. These inventions make only one size and one type of bow. There is very little, if any, versatility to these inventions.
Contrary to the above mentioned inventions, my invention is extremely versatile. The size of the bow is adjustable by increments of one inch. The number of loops in the bow is determined by the operator and can vary from a minimum of two to thirty, forty or even more, if the operator desires. The width of the ribbon is not predetermined for the operator. The operator can select from narrow to very wide ribbon. Ribbon is pre-cut only after the operator determines the number of loops and the size (diameter) of the bow desired. In addition to this invention's versatility, it is relatively inexpensive and affordable to all professional florists and similar business people who use bows in their products.